Quote:Intel brings multi-frame generation across its discrete and integrated stack

Intel Arc driver 32.0.101.8509 expands XeSS 3 Multi-Frame Generation support to Alchemist, Battlemage, and Core Ultra integrated graphics



No more mods or tricks. Intel has just released a new WHQL graphics driver for Windows, version 32.0.101.8509. The package targets Intel Arc B-Series and Arc A-Series discrete graphics, plus Intel Core Ultra processors with Intel Arc Graphics. 

The main change called out in Intel’s highlights is “XeSS 3: Multi-Frame Generation Extended Platform Support.” Intel says the feature now supports Arc B-Series discrete GPUs (Battlemage), Arc A-Series discrete GPUs (Alchemist), Arc graphics in Core Ultra Series 2 processors (Lunar Lake and Arrow Lake-H), and Arc graphics in Core Ultra processors (Meteor Lake).

This is also the first time Intel is listing official Multi-Frame Generation support across these integrated graphics platforms in the public driver notes. 

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Quote:More than 260,000 Chrome users unknowingly installed browser extensions labeled as a helpful AI assistant. According to researchers at LayerX, the coordinated campaign involved over 30 fake Chrome extensions posing as services similar to ChatGPT and Claude.

We have seen a fair share of malicious Chrome extensions since Google released the initial version of its browser. From fake VPN extensions and outright malicious extensions to sophisticated session replay malware. While marketed as AI productivity tools, new add-ons would deploy spyware that steals browsing and Gmail data.

How Fake AI Extensions on the Chrome Web Store Worked?

Researchers discovered that the malicious AI extensions shared nearly identical code, permissions, and backend infrastructure. Instead of appearing as separate tools with different names and branding, they relied on the same underlying structure.

Security researcher Natalie Zargarov explained that the campaign exploited users’ trust in AI interfaces:
 

Quote:“By injecting iframes that mimic trusted AI interfaces, they’ve created a nearly invisible man-in-the-middle attack that intercepts everything from API keys to personal data before it ever reaches the legitimate service.”

The attack was especially effective because it integrated into normal AI interactions, where users are already getting used to sharing detailed information.

The “AiFrame” extension Architecture Explained

At the core of the operation was what researchers call an “AiFrame” extension architecture.

Instead of embedding full functionality inside the extension code reviewed by Google during installation, the extensions:

• Loaded a full-screen iframe from remote domains (e.g., subdomains of tapnetic[.]pro)
  
• Overlaid the current webpage
  
• Acted as a fake AI interface
  
• Pulled instructions dynamically from backend servers
  

This setup allowed attackers to change behavior remotely without pushing an updated version to the Chrome Web Store. In other words, what users installed wasn’t necessarily what was running later.

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Quote:Microsoft is rolling out Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 28020.1611 (KB5077221) to the Canary Channel. As expected with Canary builds, this release focuses on early platform changes and experimental features.

There’s also a small known issue: the desktop watermark currently shows the wrong build number, which Microsoft says will be corrected in an upcoming build.
While you can check the previous update, here’s what’s new.

Built-In Sysmon Comes to Windows

One of the biggest additions in this build is native Sysmon support.

Previously available as a separate Sysinternals download, Sysmon (System Monitor) is now integrated directly into Windows as an optional feature. IT professionals and security teams widely use Sysmon to monitor detailed system activity for threat detection.



What Sysmon Does

Sysmon captures and logs system-level events, including:

• Process creation
  
• Network connections
  
• File changes
  
• Driver loading activity
  

These events are written to the Windows Event Log, where they can be analyzed by security tools or SIEM platforms.

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Quote:Windows 11 and supported Windows 10 PCs will get updates automatically
 
In brief: Secure Boot was originally introduced with Windows 8 as a firmware-based security feature designed to protect the OS from potentially malicious boot code. After more than 15 years, the original Secure Boot certificates are being retired and replaced with newer ones.

Microsoft is reminding users that the Secure Boot ecosystem will soon require a mandatory check-up. The Redmond-backed security protocol, part of the UEFI specification and primarily used on Windows systems, will need new encryption certificates because the older ones are expiring over the next few months.

Nuno Costa, a program manager in Microsoft's Windows Servicing and Delivery division, explained that the original Secure Boot certificates are reaching the end of their lifecycle. Starting in June 2026, the old certificates will no longer be valid.

"As cryptographic security evolves, certificates and keys must be periodically refreshed to maintain strong protection. Retiring old certificates and introducing new ones is a standard industry practice that helps prevent aging credentials from becoming a weak point and keeps platforms aligned with modern security expectations," Costa wrote on the official Windows blog.

Microsoft delivered up-to-date certificates for Secure Boot in 2023, but the originals have been used to validate the boot process since Windows 8. Users and organizations can obtain the newer certificates from several trusted sources, including UEFI firmware updates for compatible motherboards.

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Quote:The Russian government is intensifying its actions on foreign communication platforms, with fresh efforts to block WhatsApp and restrict Telegram across the country.

The move marks another escalation in Moscow’s long-running attempt to tighten control over digital communications and reduce reliance on services it does not directly regulate.

WhatsApp Domains Removed From Russian DNS

According to reports from Russian media, the country’s communications watchdog, Roskomnadzor, recently removed whatsapp.com and web.whatsapp.com from Russia’s National Domain Name System.

Officials claim the action is aimed at combating crime and fraud. In practice, however, removing the domains from domestic DNS routing makes WhatsApp accessible only through:

• VPN services
  
• External DNS resolvers
  
• Other circumvention tools
  

WhatsApp publicly responded on X, calling the move “a backwards step” that would reduce safety for people in Russia. The company said it would continue doing everything possible to keep Russian users connected.



WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta, has been labeled an “extremist” organization in Russia since 2022, which has complicated its operations in the country.

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Quote:Mesa 26.0.0 ships Vulkan 1.4 targets and RADV ray tracing performance work



Mesa 26.0.0 is now available as the latest feature release of the open-source graphics stack used on Linux and other environments, including within Microsoft’s Windows Subsystem for Linux. The release announcement lists support targets that include Vulkan 1.4, OpenGL 4.6, OpenGL ES 3.2, and OpenCL 3.0, alongside the usual driver updates across the project. 

Raytracing improvements for AMD hardware

A big focus this cycle is AMD Radeon ray tracing on Vulkan. The official release notes call out ray tracing performance work for RADV since Mesa 25.3, with contributions credited in part to Valve’s Linux graphics efforts. Back in January, Mesa developer Natalie Vock published a deep dive on RADV RT pipeline compilation changes in Mesa 26.0, describing a move toward proper function calls and separating previously inlined shader work, with an example claim of more than 2x faster RT passes in Ghostwire Tokyo on her test path.

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Quote:We have summarized the entire year in the Advanced In-The-Wild Malware Test. There is so much technical information about our testing procedures, step by step, explaining the algorithms.

The PDF document also contains a graphical summary of the most important information:

• a table summarizing each manufacturer's participation in the tests with results,
  
• the award of the year with an explanation,
  
• statistics on threats,
  
• and other data.
  

PS. Welcome to Elastic Defend in tests since January 2026 and also the popular VPN&AV provider since the March 2026 edition, SecureAPlus company as well. All changes will be published soon along with the results for the January 2026 edition.

Introduction to PDF and downloading the report on our website:

Product of the Year 2026 » AVLab Cybersecurity Foundation

Quote:Apple has just released the 26.3 versions of all of its software platforms, and that includes iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, and visionOS. As often, iOS is getting the biggest changes, as there are no new features for Mac, Apple TV, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro users.

iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3 are getting a new feature designed to limit precision location from cellular networks, but it only works for iPhones and iPads with Apple’s C1 and C1X modems. At the moment, that includes just the iPhone 16E, the iPhone Air, and the M5 iPad Pro released last year.

“With this setting turned on, some information made available to cellular networks is limited. As a result, they might be able to determine only a less precise location — for example, the neighborhood where your device is located, rather than a more precise location such as a street address,” Apple explained in a support document. Turning the feature on also doesn’t impact signal quality, as well as location data shared with friends and family via the Find My app, or emergency responders during an emergency call.

To turn Limit Precise Location on or off, users with eligible iPhones and iPads will need to go to Settings > Cellular > Cellular data options, and then scroll down to Limit Precise Location. As of today, the feature only supports six carriers around the world, including EE and BT in the UK, Telekom in Germany, Boost Mobile in the US, and AIS and True in Thailand.

With iOS 26.3, Apple is also adding a new tool for transferring data from an iPhone to an Android phone without the need to download any app. Google has also been testing a similar feature on Android for transferring data to an iPhone.

Lastly, Apple also released today iOS 18.7.5, iPadOS 18.7.5, macOS Sequoia 15.7.4, and macOS Sonoma 14.8.4. These updates only include security fixes.

Apple Releases 26.3 Updates for All Its Platforms

Quote:Microsoft has patched a high-severity security vulnerability in Windows 11 Notepad that allowed specially crafted Markdown links to launch local or remote programs - without triggering standard Windows security warnings.

The flaw tracked as CVE-2026-20841 was fixed as part of the February 2026 Patch Tuesday updates, which we release monthly.

While exploitation required a user to open a malicious Markdown file and click a link, the lack of any warning prompt made the issue especially dangerous.

What Went Wrong?

Notepad has evolved significantly since its debut in Windows 1.0. With Windows 11, Microsoft modernized the app by:

• Adding Markdown support
  
• Enabling richer formatting features
  
• Retiring WordPad as the default RTF editor
  

Markdown support allows users to create formatted text and clickable links using simple syntax, such as:

• Code:

  **Bold text**
• Code:

  [Example Link](https://example.com)

However, researchers discovered that Notepad did not properly restrict non-standard protocols inside Markdown links.

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Quote:Microsoft has officially announced Windows 11 version 26H1, but this isn’t an update you’ll see in Windows Update on your current PC.

Instead, the 26H1 release is reserved for new devices launching with next-generation ARM processors, starting with systems powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 series.

If you’re running Windows 11 today, nothing changes, and Microsoft says there’s no reason to delay purchases or deployments.

What Is Windows 11 26H1?

According to Microsoft, version 26H1 is built on a new platform release aimed at supporting upcoming ARM hardware innovations.

Unlike typical Windows feature updates:

• It is not a standard upgrade from Windows 11 25H2
  
• It will not roll out broadly via Windows Update
  
• It is pre-installed only on select new hardware
  

Microsoft confirmed that devices with Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 processors will ship with Windows 11 26H1 out of the box.

Why 26H1 Release Exists?

Windows 11 normally follows an annual feature update cadence. Microsoft releases Windows 11 26h1 only for new computers with Snapdragon X2 processor, meaning:

• Windows 11 26H2 is still expected later this year
  
• 26H1 does not replace the standard fall update cycle
  

Instead, 26H1 acts as a platform-specific branch optimized for new ARM silicon.

Microsoft says it worked closely with OEMs and hardware partners to prepare this release, enabling support for upcoming device innovations.

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